The eastern Castello area boasts the city's most extensive green area, rendered even more evocative
by its lagoon setting. Our itinerary involves long stretches going along leafy avenues without
encountering obstacles.
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After taking the No. 1 vaporetto (wheelchair accessible) from the Piazzale Roma or Ferrovia stops or the motoscafi (Nos. 4.1 and 5.1; accessible to one wheelchair at a time) you get off at Sant'Elena, transformed by 19th-century urban planning from "a short solitary strip of land" into a pine wood and attractive modern residential district whose calli are nearly all named after
places and personages of the First World War. 

[ 2 ]
Walk through the pine wood of Sant'Elena (Parco delle Rimembranze) and, heading right, go all the way down Viale Quattro Novembre; after crossing Rio di Sant'Elena you'll reach the vast campus of the "Francesco Morosini" naval college.
Continue a short way along Viale Piave, cross the flat footbridge and go past the Venice's
"Pierluigi Penzo" football stadium to reach the Church of Sant'Elena. This Gothic-style church was founded in the 13th century and features an interesting 16th-century façade by Antonio Rizzo dedicated to Admiral Vittore Cappello. The remains of Saint Helen are kept in a chapel inside the church. There are no steps leading to the entrance although you'll find a low ramp on the inside.
The church is currently being restored but the chapel is open for visits every day from 5 pm to 7 pm.
The adjoining convent features the remains of the 15th-century cloister.
 

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After leaving the church we suggest you wander among the calli of the island and enjoy the peace and quiet of this quarter and its spacious parks. After reaching Campo Stringari proceed past the Biennale pavilions. After Ponte del Paludo (ramped bridge) turn off into Paludo di S. Antonio.
This area which was created by filling in the eponymous marsh features interesting examples of "minor" residential architecture like the nearby Seco Marina.
Head for Campo San Giuseppe where you'll find the Church of San Giuseppe a Castello (Sant'Isepo in the Venetian dialect). The church, which was rebuilt in the mid-1500s and is currently under restoration, contains paintings by Paolo Veronese and Jacopo Tintoretto.
 

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From here you can go to the Giardini Napoleonici, public gardens laid out between 1808 and 1812 according to the landscaping project of Giannantonio Selva, obtained by demolishing numerous religious buildings. The gardens are so-called because they were created at the behest of Napoleon who issued a decree in 1807 stating that "the good city of Venice must be equipped
with a public space where people can stroll".
The gardens are divided into two sections: The first is a long rectangle with an avenue running down the middle with numerous monuments dedicated to historic personages (Wagner, Verdi, Carducci, Selvatico, the aviator Penzo) and the Plinth created by Carlo Scarpa for the statue La Partigiana by Leoncillo; the second, larger section, has been home to the Venice Biennale since 1895 (see Art/Architecture Biennale pamphlet).
After admiring Augusto Murer's monument Venezia alla Partigiana on the water's edge cross the flat bridge over Rio San Giuseppe and continue along Viale Garibaldi with the 19th-century Serra designed by Giannantonio Selva and now under restoration.